MICHAEL EDDY "MIKE" WORDEN

Funeral liturgy for lifelong Newcastle resident Michael Eddy Worden, 70, will be held at 10:00 A.M. Tuesday, July 20, 2021 at the Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 19 West Winthrop, Newcastle, Wyoming with Father Brian Hess as the Celebrant.  A Vigil for the Decease will be held at 7:00 P.M. Monday, July 19, 2021 at the church.  Interment will be in the Greenwood Cemetery in Newcastle.

Mike Worden died Tuesday, July 13, 2021 at the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper, Wyoming.

Mike was born Wednesday, August 30, 1950 in Denver, Colorado the son of Glenn Edwin and Madeline Vera (Tanner) Worden.  Mike was five years old when his family moved from Colorado to Midwest, Wyoming, where Scott, Mike’s brother, joined the family.  Mike attended school there until moving to Newcastle.  

He enjoyed hunting antelope, elk, and moose with his dad and had numerous funny stories about those hunting trips. He was in the Boy Scouts and attended the National Boy Scout Jamboree trip.  Mike worked a few places around town in high school including McColley Funeral Home, mowing and doing odd jobs. The owner, Don McColley, would later become his mentor.  After graduating Newcastle High School in 1968, Mike attended the University of Wyoming pursuing a degree in Engineering to follow in the footsteps of his dad.  Mike later decided to follow his true desire to serve and enrolled in and graduated from the San Francisco School of Mortuary Science.

While in high school and attending college, Mike dated Sandra Y.  Johnson of Osage, Wyoming.  The two were married on January 6th, 1973 in Laramie, Wyoming.  Their marriage started off with a trip to McDonalds in their wedding attire leaving trails of rice all over the restaurant in a story often laughed about as they told that story through the years.  Mike and Sandy moved to Gillette, Wyoming after his graduation from mortuary school where he worked for the local funeral home.  Later, Mike and Sandy moved back to his hometown of Newcastle, where he began working full time at McColley Funeral Home. Mike's family grew while in Newcastle, having two children. Rebekah and Geoffrey.  Eventually, Mike took the step and purchased the funeral home and ambulance service from Don McColley and began Worden Funeral Directors, where he worked and served the surrounding area for many decades and retired in 2020.

Mike and Sherry met on AOL LOVE CONNECT, seven months. later they were married on February 13, 1999, at the Methodist Church with Reverend Robert Firebaugh and Deacon Ken Pitlick of Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Newcastle.

Mike was an EMT II and served as Coroner for Weston County. When Mike was getting ready to retire, he gave up being coroner to Dr. Stephenson.  Slowly the ambulances were given up and on November 19, 2020, he sold the funeral home, and began looking forward to retirement.

Through Mike and Sherry’s twenty-two years of marriage they really never fought, mostly disagreements over the funeral home. He loved showing Sherry Wyoming and they cruised to Alaska, Montana and other places.   He loved his blended children. Mike treated his and Sherry’s children fairly and would do things with them, especially Tristin, Taylor and Taryn.

They had two big plans for their retirement, go to Europe (Covid) came along and stopped that and then to attend Sherry’s oldest son’s wedding in Georgia in August of this year. Mike passed away with this non curable disease “Lewy’s Body Dementia” which is fast growing.

Mike and Sherry loved staying at home and doing little things around and outside the home, they would dance around the house while Sherry sung “May I have this Dance for the rest of my life.”, no more dancing, laughing, and sleeping on the back porch. Sherry has the memories to cherish forever.  Mike enjoyed his trips through the Black Hills, fishing , shooting with his step sons, Eric and Billy.

Through the years, Mike enjoyed playing the piano as long as he thought nobody could hear him.   He enjoyed taking his family on trips around Wyoming and the Black Hills area camping along the way.   Practical jokes were often at the wit of Mike.  Coming home from a late night of work to a house full of kids having a sleepover would lead him to playing jokes on everybody to wake up too. You could often find him on the shooting range.  He had a passion for collector guns and loved shooting. Often on his Harley riding around town and the area or flying around a lake on his jet ski, a newfound passion while on a family camping trip.  Mike very much-loved spending time with his grandchildren every chance he had to see them.

He is survived by his wife, Sherry F. Worden, of Newcastle; children, Rebekah L. “Becky” (Barry L.) Clyde of Springfield, Georgia and Geoffrey M. “Geoff” (Kristie L.) Worden of Gillette, Wyoming; grandchildren, Chord G. Worden of Laramie, Wyoming, Tristin S. Clyde of Springfield, Taylor L. Clyde of Springfield, and Taryn W. Clyde of Springfield, and brother, Scott E. Worden.

Mike was preceded in death by his grandparents; father, Glenn, on March 26, 1981; mother, Madeline, on July 27, 2016; and first wife, Sandra Y. Worden, on May 1, 1998.

In lieu of flowers, memorials to Salt Creek Veterinary Clinic in care of the First State Bank, P.O. Box 910, Newcastle, Wyoming 82701 would be appreciated by the family.  

The Gorman Funeral Homes – Converse Chapel of Douglas, Wyoming is in charge of the arrangements.

Condolences may be sent to the family at www.gormanfh.com

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